The 25th Annual BC Witchcamp
Sunday, August 26 – Saturday, Sept 1, 2012
Camp Intention: Centered in love and the magic of witchcamp,
we connect to the web of ecstatic life force,
transforming repression into liberation in the world
for generations to come.
Camp Story: In the Womb of Nut…
Abridged from: The Passion of Isis and Osiris | A Union of Two Souls Copyright 1995 by Jean Houston
From this union of self with Self, Atum, the great He/She, begat two tawny, lion-headed children (Shu and Tefnut); and they begat two children, who were Heaven and Earth. The daughter, Nut, was dawn and dusk. The son, Geb, was the passionate life force of the earth, which lay below. They were a pair of divine lovers. Whatever emotion passed through Geb passed also through Nut.
Nut bore Geb a pair of sons during the hours of dawn and dusk. One she named Ra, the golden child and noble sun. The other she named Thoth, the silvery orb of Moon. As sun and moon, they measured the cycles, and because of them there existed time.
Nut became pregnant again and her body swelled. As her excitement about her pregnancy grew, so grew the irritation of her firstborn, Ra. Jealous of his mother’s love, he commanded the god of air to uplift Nut. She found herself removed ever farther from her beloved, able always to see him, but unable to touch him except at the edges of the horizon, where her fingers and toes brushed earth. Said Ra: “I, who invented night and day, who measure the length of years and months, decree that no other child shall be born on any day of my year. Furthermore, I shall create children of my own, flesh of my flesh, for I have no need of a wife.”
Meanwhile, the cries of the increasingly pregnant Nut rang throughout the edges of the universe. Skies rained, stars darkened and earth’s bones quivered. The planets stood still. Heaven shrieked and earth trembled. Nut bellowed and moaned like a great cow whose udders are too full of milk. Yet she could not be delivered of her children, whom she loved as much as life itself but who now became an unbearable burden to her. There was Osiris, brother, son, father, husband, watcher in the dark. There was Isis, woman, wife, widow, dancer, goddess of desire, mother of a god. There was Horus, whom the mortals called Hero, the divine son of a divine couple, twice born, once in heaven and once on earth. There was Nephthys, lady of the house, mistress of the shadows. There was Set, warrior and rebel.
Ages passed. The children grew tall, beauteous and full of desire. Brother married sister: Set and Nephthys; Isis, Queen of Heaven and Earth, and Osiris, Lord on Earth and in the realm of dreams. He was a handsome man—dark and almond eyed, muscular, his backbone straight; she his dark-haired, blue-eyed, passionate sister. Together, they lay four ages — eight thousand years.
They knew each other’s thoughts, dreamed each other’s dreams. So great was their attunement that a whole world rose out of their dreaming. Said Horus, “It is Ra who imprisons us here. He has written a decree. In no day of his year shall we be born. How she suffers; and we feel that suffering, imprisoned as we are in her belly, separated as is she from what she loves.” Set shouted “Bastard Sun, could I but see him face-to-face, I’d poke his eye out. Turn about, oh sleepers, in this haunted place, which you know not, but which I know utterly.” Beneath his sandals, the red dirt spawned snakes.
No other way to birth Nut’s children could be found. Yet Thoth was such a clever gamesman that over time he slowly won from Ra several small parts of the god’s golden light. “You are bright, brother Ra,” Thoth said “But greed hinders your brilliance. Let’s make a deal. I have, by my own reckoning, won five days of your light. These days shall be returned to you on the condition that the children of Nut be born, one child for each day I have taken.” Ra banged his hands and feet together; but at length he finally agreed. Then the five sky-born gods and goddesses of Heaven gathered at the edge of the great abyss, drawing lots to see who should be born first. Osiris. Horus. Set. Isis. Nephthys.
With a sigh from Mother Sky and a rush of amniotic waters, the first god-man was born complete with his seven souls (intelligence, name, heart, shadow, flesh, beatific body and double). Then Horus was born. But he clung to the belly of the sky– a hawk of gold whose clawed feet never pressed against earth. Keen were his eyes and wide his vision. Then Set, malformed by his rage, was born with the head of an ass. He was hideous to behold, his noble heart hardened into a lump of iron. Then Isis passed through the portal of time. On the fifth day, the goddess Nephthys was born amid a shroud of mystery. She hid her light in the way that the sun often hides the face of the moon by day, or in the way that some faint stars can only be seen at night when viewed from the corner of the eye.
From these patterns was the world made.
Read the whole story here…
NOTE REGARDING PATHS AND RITUAL AT BCWC
If you are new to the Reclaiming Tradition or to witchcraft in general, know that you are welcome at BCWC. Know also that your experience at camp will be greatly enriched by some preparation before camp. Consider reading “The Spiral Dance” by Starhawk, or visiting and reading the content at www.reclaiming.org.
Please notice that the path descriptions on the Paths and Teachers page include skill level and prerequisite information.
GENERAL INFORMATION
BCWC CAMP LOCATION
Evans Lake Forestry Camp is an hour and a half drive from Vancouver, located 15 kilometres north of Squamish BC, in Paradise Valley, on a picturesque mountain lake. The site offers a feeling of seclusion but is serviced with all basic amenities. A map to Evans Lake Forestry Camp will be mailed to registrants with their letter of confirmation, as well as a list of things needed to prepare for camp.
ACCESSIBILITY
The camp is situated on somewhat hilly terrain and is not conducive to wheelchairs; call or write and talk to us about your concerns. Together we may find a solution.
TRANSPORTATION TO CAMP
Carpooling to camp is highly recommended, because of limited parking, and to lessen the impact of cars on the environment. If you can offer a ride, please fill out the information on the registration form. If you need a ride please let us know that, too – we are often able to coordinate rides leaving from Vancouver, Vancouver Island, Seattle and Portland, and occasionally other cities. You can expect to share in the cost of fuel.
DIVERSITY
We honour the diversity in all people and welcome all races, sexual orientations and differences of life situation, background, and ability that increase our diversity. We accept adults 19 and older. Although we cannot generally accommodate children or minors, we very occasionally make exceptions for older teens accompanied by their legal guardians, with prior consent from the BC Witchcamp organizing cell.
NUDITY
Yes. However, not in the dining hall or near to where staff resides.
ACCOMMODATIONS
The cabins are centrally located and are electrically heated. The bunk beds have covered mattresses; campers must bring their own sleeping bag or sheets, pillows, and blankets. There are hot showers in the washrooms. A large recreation hall will provide indoor space for rituals when needed (but…let’s think “outdoors”!)
TENTS
There is tenting space in the woods, for people who want private space. The registration fee is the same as for cabins. Space is assigned on a first come, first served basis.
MEALS
Three delicious meals are served daily in the dining hall with vegetarian and some meat options. We will strive to offer non-dairy and wheat-free meals for those who require it, however, please know that it is not possible for the kitchen staff or within our budget to meet every dietary requirement. For severely restricted diets, please consider bringing supplements to camp meals, and act accordingly. Please complete the Food Section on the registration form. There are no cooking facilities available to campers.
MARKETPLACE
A vibrant and colourful market reflects the creativity and diversity of our community and provides a lively meeting place each day after dinner. You must be a registered camper to be a vendor. Vendors contribute 13% of all sales and services to our Financial Assistance Fund. The Witches’ Funk Trunk Boutique is a very cool and funky place to shop. Donations of used-but-good ritual wear, costumes, and accessories are welcome.
TEMPLE SPACE
Again this year, BCWC will include a sacred, private, reservable space for opening to beauty and delight. It is a sex-positive space, the venue for facilitated workshops and events, and more – people can use it as a cuddle space, for massage, etc. The temple organizers do what they can in terms of supplies, but we encourage people to bring what they wish to make this space work for them.
SMOKING
Smoking is limited to designated outside areas. There is no smoking inside any buildings.
CELL PHONES
The use of cell phones will be limited to designated areas only. Please honour this.
PRACTICAL DETAILS
REGISTRATION FEE
Camp registration fees are set so we cover costs of putting on camp, including planning meetings outside of camp. The fee range this year is a sliding scale of $625-900 CAD or USD. While the use of PayPal has been very successful in helping people pay for camp on time, last year it cost the camp about $600 to use PayPal – the cost of sending a whole camper to camp! The preferable method is to register online and send in check(s) or money orders(s). If you choose to use Paypal, we ask you to consider contributing towards the Paypal fee, which is $20+ per registration (for a total of $645-920 sliding scale).
ABOUT THE SLIDING SCALE
Our sliding scale for this year’s camp is $625-$900 per camper (actual cost is $625 per camper). Below are the suggested guidelines:
If you have income of $40,000 or less per year, consider paying the minimum and, perhaps even asking for assistance through scholarship or work exchange.
If you have income of $40,000 to $60,000 per year, please try to pay a bit more to help with scholarships if possible. If needed, ask for assistance.
If you have income of $60,000 to $80,000 per year, please try to pay $700.
If you have income of $80,000 to $100,000 per year, please try to pay $800.
If you have income above $100,000 per year, please try to pay $900.
We recognize that the above are only guidelines. Your actual contribution to the community may depend on the number of people you support on your income as well as other factors known only to you. We strongly encourage all campers who cannot afford the minimum to apply for scholarships. We have increased our fundraising efforts this year in an attempt to compensate for the increased cost of camp.
TO REGISTER
We strongly encourage registration here at our website. You can then send a check or money order to the following address:
BCWC, 5 – 535 Glenmeadows Rd, Kelowna, BC V1V 1X7.
If you are unable to send a cheque or money order, it is also possible to pay by PayPal. Please keep in mind that BCWC will be charged $20+ for each registration by Paypal, as you may want to adjust your sliding scale payment to help cover the cost.
If necessary, you may register using paper and post (snail-mail). To access a printable version of the form to send in by regular mail, click here. Payment must be made by money order or personal cheque.
With either method, you have these options:
1. Pay the total registration fee at the time of registration, or
2. Make a Deposit (minimum of $150.00 CAD or USD; due when registering), and pay the balance with 1, 2 or 3 payments.
By mail include post-dated cheques with your paper registration or after online registration, the final cheque to be dated no later than July 30.
Note: NSF cheques will be charged a $15 fee and may result in being put at end of waiting list.
By PayPal please indicate on your registration form if you will be making 1, 2 or 3 more payments on PayPal, with dates and amounts, with the final payment to be made no later than July 30.
CONFIRMATION
A letter of confirmation with a list of what to bring plus a map to Evans Lake will be sent to registrants starting May 15th and thereafter as registrations are received.
CANCELLATIONS
A $75 non-refundable fee will be applied to all cancellations. Cancellations received after July 30 will forfeit the entire payment if their place cannot be filled. After August 21 there are no refunds.
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
See the Financial Assistance page for the types of financial assistance available, as well as how and when to apply. Please note: financial assistance is intended to defray part of the cost of camp. We are unable to offer assistance with transportation costs.
Your confirmation packet will answer most of your questions! If not, please write us at info@bcwitchcamp.ca, call Lindsay at 250 868-0598, or check back here.
BCWC is operated by the Witch Camp of BC Society.
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